Warrington Wolves will finally get the chance to compete for the Super League title on Saturday after booking a place in their first ever Grand Final with a stirring win at the home of their local rivals St Helens.

The Wolves survived a first-half onslaught and then rallied through second-half tries from former Australia internationals Joel Monaghan and Trent Waterhouse to set up a repeat of the Challenge Cup final against Leeds Rhinos in a match that pits Tony Smith, a former head coach at the Rhinos, against Brian McDermott, the man who served Smith as assistant during his four-year stint at Headingley.

Monaghan's score turned the momentum in Warrington's favour, but two tries in four minutes from Waterhouse provided the confirmation that the Wolves can now count themselves among British rugby league's elite.

It is 57 years since Warrington were last crowned champions and they will be confident of ending that run when they emerge from the Old Trafford tunnel in next Saturday.

"It's enormous for the club, town and everybody involved," Smith said. "It's nice to be involved at Wembley [at the Challenge Cup final], but to be competing to be top of the pile is big for everyone.

"It takes a lot of people to work in the same direction to get to this match, and when you all pull together you can achieve big things. I just hope you don't have to lose one [Grand Final] to win one. We've finals experience from Wembley and I hope that will steady our nerves."

Chris Riley claimed his second score soon after Waterhouse's brace to give the Wolves enough breathing space to relax into the final 10 minutes, and even Francis Meli's late try was not enough to set nerves jangling.

The St Helens caretaker coaches Mike Rush and Keiron Cunningham must take credit for rescuing a season that included the dismissal of Royce Simmons but they were ultimately well beaten in their quest to grab a seventh successive Grand Final appearance.

"We were pleased at half-time, but we were a little slow in the second half and Warrington were fantastic," Rush said. "Trent Waterhouse was the best I've seen him, and Brett Hodgson, Lee Briers and Richie Myler did what they do best. I'd have taken being 40 minutes away from a Grand Final when we took over."

Saints held only a 14-12 half time lead, but they should have been further ahead. Three times in the opening exchanges Briers was forced to kick from deep within Warrington territory as the hosts displayed the defensive intensity that has made them such fierce play-off competitors.

Saints sniffed blood, and a deft kick from Jonny Lomax cranked up the pressure before Lance Hohaia and Chris Flannery presented Tommy Makinson with the smallest of openings. His acrobatic finish was as eye-catching as it was effective, beating his opposite man, Riley, with a horizontal dive that defied all probability until video replays proved conclusively he had touched down in the corner.

St Helens appeared in control, but Jon Wilkin's knock-on soon gifted Warrington their first genuine attack and Hodgson fed Riley for his 100th Warrington touchdown. However, Saints were in no mood to let up, with Mark Flanagan off-loading Jonny Lomax's flat ball to allow Meli to squeeze over.

Makinson's missed conversion meant Saints only held a slender two-point advantage, but the winger was on target when Paul Wellens registered the hosts' third score from Wilkin's towering bomb.

Warrington needed something – anything – and found a way through when Simon Grix crashed over from Briers' pass after Paul Wood and Michael Monaghan had both kept the ball alive in midfield.

It was enough to bring the Wolves to life, and their second-half aggression was too much for St Helens. Warrington are now within touching distance of an increasingly rare domestic double. Few will doubt they are capable of making their mark in rugby league's history books.